Separable multiple envelopes openable without tools

ABSTRACT

Envelopes attached to each other along their edges by perforated strips to facilitate multiple addressing of the envelopes in a typewriter. The envelopes can be separated by tearing along the perforations of the connecting strips. The envelopes have tear perforations along one side margin and a viewing aperture at the opposite side margin to facilitate opening and removal of the contents.

United States Patent 1191 Williams 1 1 Jan.2,1973

[54] SEPARABLE MULTIPLE ENVELOPES OPENABLE WITHOUT TOOLS [76] Inventor: Wilhelm A. Williams, 340 West 71st Street, New York, NY. 10023 [22] Filed: Jan. 15, 1971 [21] Appl. No.: 106,730

[52] US. Cl ..229/69, 229/85 [51] Int. Cl. ..B65d 27/10 [58] Field of Search ..229/69, 85

[56] References Cited UNITED STATES PATENTS 689,298 12/1901 Fried 229/09 761,912 6/1904 Rheutan ..229/69 UX 2,351,805 6/1944 Bonnaire ..229/69 UX 6/1956 Thurman ..229/85 341,297 5/1886 White..... .....229/85 1,039,899 10/1912 Cole ..229/85 2,338,922 1/1944 Fleming. .....229/69 2,715,493 8/1955 Vogt ..229/69 Primary Examiner-Davis T. Moozrhead Attorney-Herman, Davidson & Berman [57] ABSTRACT Envelopes attached to each other along their edges by perforated strips to facilitate multiple addressing of the envelopes in a typewriter. The envelopes can be separated by tearing along the perforations of the connecting strips. The envelopes have tear perforations along one side margin and a viewing aperture at the opposite side margin to facilitate opening and removal of the contents.

4 Claims, 6 Drawing Figures SEPARABLE MULTIPLE ENVELOPES OPENABLE WITHOUT TOOLS This invention relates to improvementsin envelopes, and more particularly to envelopes joined together to facilitate addressing the envelopes in a typewriter.

A main object of the invention is to provide a novel and improved multiple envelope assembly which facilitates handling the envelopes and addressing them in a typewriter and wherein the individual envelopes are easily separated, the assembly being very simple in construction, being easy to handle, and providing a great saving in time and labor in addressing the envelopes.

A further object of the invention is to provide an improved multiple envelope assembly which is so arranged that the individual envelopes thereof can be easily addressed without the necessity of handling each individual envelope separately, the assembly being very inexpensive to fabricate, the individual envelopes being easily separated, and the individual envelopes'being so arranged that the contents thereof can be readily removed without damage thereto.

A still further object of the invention is to provide an improved multiple envelope assembly enabling a large number of envelopes to be addressed by inserting the assembly into a typewriter, the arrangements being such as to minimize handling of the envelopes, and the improved structure being such that the individual envelopes can be easily separated from each other by merely tearing along the edges thereof.

Further objects and advantages of the invention will become apparent from the following description and claims, and from the accompanying drawings, wherein:

FIG. lis an elevational view showing an improved multiple envelope assembly according to the present invention, the individual envelopes being joined along their longitudinal edges.

FIG. 2 is a perspective view, to a reduced scale, showing the envelope assembly of FIG. 1 folded to define a stack, with the individual envelopes superimposed over each other.

FIG. 3 is an enlarged plan view of a paper blank employed to form one of the individual envelopes of the assembly of FIGS. 1 and 2. u

FIG. 4 is an elevational view of the adhesive'covered side of a perforated connecting strip employed to join a pair of adjacent envelopes together at their longitudinal edges, as in the assembly of FIG. 1.

FIG. 5 is a perspective view of one of the individual envelopes of the assembly of FIG. 1, shown detached from the assembly.

FIG. 6 is a fragmentary elevation'al view, to a reduced scale, showing a modified form of a multiple envelope assemblyaecording to the present invention,

' wherein two columns of envelopes are. connected together along their end edges.

Referring to the drawings, and more particularly to FIGS. 1 'to 5,,11 generally designates a typical multiple envelope. assembly constructed in accordance with the present invention. The assembly 11 comprises a series of individual envelopes of generally conventional construction which are connected together along their adjacent longitudinal edges by perforated connecting strips 13. Thus,,each strip 13 comprises a band of paper having its rear face. covered with suitable pressure-sensitive adhesive material 14, such as rubber cement, or the like, the bands 13 being formed with longitudinal perforations or score lines 15 located along the median longitudinal line of each strip. Thus, the strips 13 are secured respectively to the lower longitudinal margin of an upper envelope and the upper longitudinal margin of the next lower envelope, as shown in FIG. 1, preferably at the rear sides of the envelopes. Thus, strip 13 will be connected to the generally triangular lower flap portion 16 of an upper envelope along the lower longitudinal margin thereof and will similarly be connected to the upper longitudinal marginal portion of the flap element 17 of the subjacent envelope.

As shown in FIG. 3, each individual envelope may comprise a blank having a rectangular main body portion 18 with triangular opposite side flaps l9 and 20 and with a generally triangular or trapezoidal lower flap 16, along with the conventional triangular top flap 17. The side flaps l9 and 20 are provided at their lower edges with adhesive coatings 21, whereby the side flaps l9 and 20 will adhere to the opposite side marginal portions of the bottom flap 16 when the bottom flapis first folded inwardly to overlie the main body 18 and the side flaps l9. and 20 are then folded over the bottom flap to engage the adhesive 21 with the opposite side marginal portions of said bottom flap. The top flap 17 is provided with the conventional marginal lower adhesive 23. In accordance with the present invention, the main body portion 18 of the blank is provided with a longitudinal aperture 25 located near its lower corner, as viewed in FIG. 3.

The other end is provided with parallel. perforated lines 26, 27 spaced equal distances on opposite sidesof the right fold line 28, as viewed in FIG. 3, whereby the right marginal portion, shown at 29 on each envelope in its assembled condition is easily detachable from the remainder portion of the envelope.

The assembly 11 may comprise any desired number of individual envelopes, and the envelopes may be folded into superimposed relationship to each other to define the folded stack 30, shown in FIG. 2. When the envelopes are to bev addressed, they are unfolded from the stack 30 and inserted into a typewriter, the operation requiring only one insertion of the first envelope into the typewriter, after which the successive envelopes can be addressed merely by advancing them through the typewriter. Thus, the envelopes may be addressed successively in the typewriter without the necessity of removing any of them from the typewriter until the last envelope has been addressed, after which the individual envelopes may be separated from each other for mailing. To separate the envelopes it is merely necessary to tear along the perforated lines '15 of the respective tearable connecting strips 13.

The apertures 25 at the end margins of the envelopes allow thecontents of the envelopes to be observed to the extent that it is possible to shift the contentsleftwards, as viewed in FIG. 5,.so that the left margin of the contents of the envelope is received in the portion 29 at the left end of the envelope. Said portion 29 may then be grasped between the thumb and the forefinger and the envelope may be torn along the adjacent tear lines 26', 27 to remove portion 29 along withthe contents of the envelope. The provision of the apertures 25 thus enables the contents of theenvelope to be moved easily left and without damage thereto, since it enables the contents of the envelope to be shifted to the proper position for detaching the opposite end portion 29 of the envelope.

In the embodiment of the invention illustrated in FIG. 6, the envelopes 12 are joined not only along their longitudinal edge portions by the attaching strips 13 but may also be joined along their adjacent end edge portions by similar attaching strips to define two or more columns of attached envelopes. The assembly then becomes a sheet of envelopes comprising more than one column, and this sheetmay be inserted in a typewriter to facilitate addressing of the respective individual envelopes. For example, if the sheet comprises two columna of joined envelopes, as in FIG. 6, twice the amount of envelopes of a given stack height may be addressed in a typewriter after initial insertion of the sheet than in the case of the single-column arrangement of FIGS. 1 and 2. The strips joining the adjacent end margins of the envelopes in FIG. 6 may be similar to the tearable strips 13 employed for joining adjacent longitudinal edges of the envelopes. Thus, the individual envelopes may be easily separated after they have been addressed.

' The tearable strips 13 may be of any suitable flexible material, such as paper, thin sheet plastic material, or the like.

The observation apertures 25 of the envelopes may be either open or may be covered by suitable thin transparent material, such as cellophane, or the like, if so desired.

It should be apparent from the above that the present invention not requiring tools to open avoids the defects and disadvantages of ordinary envelopes. These disadvantages are that when an electric letter opener is used, many times the letter inside the envelope is cut, and there are frequent failures to cut, or open, soft envelopes, or those having bent or bulky contents. A hand letter opener requires a great deal of energy and time to insert the point under the flap and for subsequent forward movement. It also frequently crushes the letter. By contrast, the present invention requires only the fingers to open, saving space, electricity and energy otherwise required for use of tools.

- Although certain specific embodiments of the invention have been shown and described, it is obvious that many modifications thereof are possible. The invention, therefore, is not intended to be restricted to the exact showing of the drawings and description thereof, but is considered to include reasonable and obvious equivalents.

What is claimed is:

1. An envelope assembly comprising a plurality of substantially rectangular envelopes and connection means joining the envelopes along theiredges, whereby to define a sheet comprising a plurality of joined envelopes adapted to be inserted into a typewriter as a unit for addressing or the like, said connection means having tear perforations extending for the length of the envelope edges for allowing the envelopes to be separated, wherein said connection means comprises flexible strips of tearable material overlying and adhesively secured on adjacent margins of the envelope, said tear perforations extending along the length of the fle 'ble str' the tri be'n oldable so th tthe e vei pes car i l e arra nggd in a oided stack, and wherein the envelopes are joined by said flexible strips both at their longitudinal margins and at their side margins to define a substantially flat sheet comprising a plurality of 'side-by-side columns of envelopes insertable in a typewriter as a unit.

2. The envelope assembly of claim 1, and wherein each envelope has tear perforations extending along one end margin thereof and on both the front and back sides of the envelope to define a detachable end portion-to facilitate removal of the contents of the envelope.

3. The envelope assembly of claim 2, and wherein each envelope has an aperture at the opposite end margin thereof to show the location of the contents in the envelope.

4. An envelope having tear perforations extending along one end margin thereof and on both the front and back sides of the envelope to define a detachable end marginal portion to facilitate removal of the contents of the envelope, said envelope having an aperture at the opposite end margin thereof to show the location of the contents in the envelope and so that said contents may be shifted toward said opposite end marginal portion so that said contents may be gripped simultaneously with the detachment of said end marginal portion. 

1. An envelope assembly comprising a plurality of substantially rectangular envelopes and connection means joining the envelopes along their edges, whereby to define a sheet comprising a plurality of joined envelopes adapted to be inserted into a typewriter as a unit for addressing or the like, said connection means having tear perforations extending for the length of the envelope edges for allowing the envelopes to be separated, wherein said connection means comprises flexible strips of tearable material overlying and adhesively secured on adjacent margins of the envelope, said tear perforations extending along the length of the flexible strips, the strips being foldable so that the envelopes can be arranged in a folded stack, and wherein the envelopes are joined by said flexible strips both at their longitudinal margins and at their side margins to define a substantially flat sheet comprising a plurality of side-by-side columns of envelopes insertable in a typewriter as a unit.
 2. The envelope assembly of claim 1, and wherein each envelope has tear perforations extending along one end margin thereof and on both the front and back sides of the envelope to define a detachable end portion to facilitate removal of the contents of the envelope.
 3. The envelope assembly of claim 2, and wherein each envelope has an aperture at the opposite end margin thereof to show the location of the contents in the envelope.
 4. An envelope having tear perforations extending along one end margin thereof and on both the front and back sides of the envelope to define a detachable end marginal portion to facilitate removal of the contents of the envelope, said envelope having an aperture at the opposite end margin thereof to show the location of the contents in the envelope and so that said contents may be shifTed toward said opposite end marginal portion so that said contents may be gripped simultaneously with the detachment of said end marginal portion. 